Friendly Doodles Temperament Discussion in Ontario

[Aron and Tracey]

Hi

    We are interested in labra/golden doodles. We're a family of 5, with 3 daughters 9 - 15. We'd like a doodle that is a happy, easy going participant in our daily lives, with no dominance or aggression issues. We're curious to know if anyone finds any difference in temperaments from size to size, from chocolate to cream or from lab to golden? And certainly if anyone has any recommendations, or otherwise regarding breeders please contact us directly.

Thanks for your time and we look forward to your replies.

Aron & Tracey.

[F, Calla & Luca]

There are exceptions, though. Calla doesn't shed but she really just need some trimming in a few places. She doesn't like to be brushed and i don't brush her much. That's all about to change but I hope her adult coat is easy, too.

[F, Calla & Luca]

I have 2 ALD. Luca, who will be 2 in March, was a bit more difficult as a puppy than Calla, who is just 1. That was in large part due to my lack of puppy experience when I got Luca. I'm also not the most dedicated of trainers. Yet they are both good dogs who love everyone and are never aggressive if you don't count the squirrel : ) I got them from 2 different breeders and both experiences were good. Luca is about 41 pounds and Calla is 50 pounds. They don't shed. Luca's coat is very fine and wavy. He has matted very easily since he was about 9 months old. I do all my grooming and I'm still hoping it will end. Calla has a gorgeous wavy fleece coat which is starting to come out in clump but she has had virtually no mats to date.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Unless you are really familiar with how MUCH grooming a doodle might need, I wouldn't call it a non-issue. If you truly understand how high maintenance some coats can be, then it is a non-issue. When we were told that we needed to brush Ned about once or maybe twice a week with a pin brush - I thought it was the 2 minute once or twice a week we spend brushing our Springer. NOT. If coat type is an issue, a good breeder can guide you to getting closest to the coat type you desire. Some doodles do have digestion issues - I kind of think many are the result of careless breeders = but not all. I would join certain groups if you haven't already - the grooming group, nutrition group,puppy madness group, owner recommended breeder group to name a few. You could also join the goups for the type of doodle you think you might want. Even reading other posts in these groups will help you with your decision.

[F, Calla & Luca]

Nancy's Ned is like my Luca in regards to his coat. Nancy is much more conscientious at grooming than I am, which takes much more time but is also why Ned always looks so good. I often try to separate the mats out a bit but often cut them out.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Great advice, Nancy.

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Aron - Peri is a mini F1 goldendoodle and sheds very, very lightly (hardly at all).
Grooming her is very time consuming. I have been brushing her daily while her adult hair has been coming in. I brushed and combed her out the other day and by the end of that day, I found new matts on her. I know it gets harder with the multigeneration doodles because they have more poodle in them. But, if you make a committment to brushing on a daily basis (or even every other day), it will be okay. I also trim the hair around her eyes and privates (sorry for that visual) on occasion to keep from having to go to the groomer so often.

As others say, check out the groups on here to get a better feel for things.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Now that we have warned you of the down side, I have to say that we all LOVE our doodles - the personalities, the looks (whichever look that is) the sizes,and their zest for life; and recommend doodles as wonderful family pets. Doodles are definitely people oriented and fun-loving. They are not and should not ever be 'backyard' or farm dogs and by that I mean that while they love to have "jobs" they are not dogs who should spend the bulk of their lives outdoors, only in the company of other animals. Please keep us posted in your search.

[BG and Gavin]

So to start again, I am from Sarnia, ON. I communicated with four different breeders in the Sarnia/London area before I was successful in getting Gavin who is an awesome 6 month old goldendoodle puppy. He is sweet and generally laid back, but curious and highly social. He is also exceedingly handsome. He is going to be a big boy however. His front paws are the size of frying pans and he is nearly 50lbs. If you want specific information about the breeders I spoke to you can send me a PM as I do not think that sort of thing is allowed on the public forum, nor would I be comfortable sharing it here.

[Lorraine Bromley]

Hi Again, I made a boo boo by stating our breeder name in the last post, Sorry to all. I am extremely happy with Neely. But if I was doing it again I would use the tool Adina has for breeder standards. We did have about as much testing as possible done on the parents as that was one of my wants in choosing a breeder.
We also went and physically visited breeders scheduled and not. After searching internet info we had narrowed a list down. This was instrumental in choosing Neely.
I would go with the intention of investigating breeders not with the idea of getting a puppy. Go with a full mind of disconect from anything cute and fluffy and concentrate on the breeder themselves the parents of the puppy the state of the kennel anything but that cute little fluff ball. Paperwork is extremely important as in genetic testing, vet visits, warranty information.
I had been looking into a new dog and doodles for a couple of years casually. Then set a year for serious investigation. I still feel that I should have done more to choose a breeder. Neely is the light of our lives and has been the catalyst for change in our house all for the better. But he has definite downfalls especially if your not prepared or listen to the breeder exclusively as they are just there to make money. Telling you white lies like oh it will likely turn the colour you just happened to mention you like as he ages! He won't shed even though he is an F1. His parents are registered pure breds. Oh they are purebreds but we didn't register them.
Don't try to explain away any concerns like well they said he might shed so he won't likely just to talk your self into one either it will back fire and you your family and the dog will suffer for it. I have sister who did just that and now has a dog that is poorly trained poorly exercised on anxiety meds that is more dog than she should have even considered. But they talked themselves out of the downfalls of the breed to suite the ideals they had for thier pet that would be different and would not be like that. And it was the perfect looking dog.
Bathing and combing and cleaning ears trimming hair and nails is the main up keep.
Exercise and playtime are extremely important. He loves having his friends over to play! We have a large fenced yard as well as an electric perimeter fence.
Training starts immedietley, he shook a paw the second day home. and quickly learned after being shown 2-3 times most times. He rings bells to go outside for pee poo Professional classes are a must as well as very involved socialization in those first months. Ours had arenas, every size shape age and ethnic person, elevators, airplanes, escalators, isles in stores, other animals, sounds of all sorts, basically we took him everywhere. Nursing homes. large groups one on ones puppy play times ect. Invest in this and keep doing it think of it as a family activity where you get to know your dog and spend time with your family in a fun and positive new way.
Always having a wet mop for a beard from drinking is another issue.
tracking in wet mud and any debri in the long hair like burrs and weed seeds that stick in the hair ,my personal enemy!
fur and vaccuming constently. If they shed but it may take up to two years to figure that out and they will go through a coat change and lose it for a time. Ours didn't shed now he is shedding and matting at one yr old.
I do not for one minute regardless of these realities regret getting a doodle. He is my choice and I only wish I couldn't get one in every colour!
Come on down to Stratford for a visit.

[Gina and Finn]

I have a 10 month old standard size australian labradoodle and I also have 3 daughters ages 11,14, and 17. We decided to get a male puppy to let my husband have SOME male influence in the house but as the ALD's are neutered early there is apparently no difference in peresonality traits . I may be way off on this but observationally, from friends doodles and reading along here, it seems the the multigenerational doodles(either lab or golden) seem to be easier to accurately predict size. We did take a two and a half hour drive to meet the breeder and our pup before we brought him home. Between that visit and the day we picked him up we met several adult dogs and about 10 puppies from 2 litters-old enough to be exposed to outsiders. The adult dogs were beautiful ,obviously well cared for and had great dispositions.The puppies were great of course and it was hard to leave without one that day.We went when our pup was 8 weeks but we were not taking him until he was 11 weeks for personal scheduling reasons. The mother was back at her guardian home but we met the Dad on pick up day. It was clear though that the adult dogs living there were great and well trained. Our pup was one probably the shiest in a crowd but so sweet and not at all afraid of people or the other dogs. When we got him home the vet said she wanted him to meet 90 people and 90 dogs in 90 days.It seemed daunting but once he had all his shots and we walked in the park he would meet lots of people and at least a few dogs every day. EVERYBODY wants to stop and see these guys,they are so cute-especially as puppies.This taught him how to greet other dogs and strangers.
He is a wavy fleece coat and so far the grooming has not been bad. He does truck in dirt and stuff stuck to him but no shedding.The greatest thing is the disposition of these dogs. I take him in the car all the time going to and from kid stuff and he is great.He's big but friendly and gentle so even little kids are not intimidated.We are working on him pulling when we walk him because I worry my youngest daughter is not strong enough but I got a gentle leader harness a few weeks ago and that is working well . Good luck, I hope you find a great puppy for your family

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Back to the on-track temperament discussion, as everyone says, if you go with a great breeder (contact your fellow DK friends in Ontario, many of which are in this discussion), I don't think you can go wrong with size, color or lab/golden choices. If the breeder is selecting the best parents, doing the genetic testing, and keeping their dogs and pups in good conditions (and socializing them), I don't think you can go wrong. I don't think it is necessarily required to be able to go visit the breeder's home, but I would follow a recommendation from someone who has been there. You just don't know how their kennels are laid out, if puppies are really "raised in the home" as they say, etc...
I personally met Peri's mother and went to my breeder's house every week once she was born. But I was so lucky to live within 10 miles of her. Peri is an F1 mini goldendoodle. At 10 months, she is 23 pounds, 16" tall and can really "hang with the big dogs" as they say. Her mother was a 50 pound golden, father a 14 pound mini poodle. Here is a recent photo of my girl:

[Tamara & Giada]

We have a f1b Chocolate Standard Labradoodle and she is AWESOME!!! She is the BEST and we love her!! I agree witth he others that the size, type or color would not matter. What does matter is LOTS of training and attention.......these dogs are VERY smart, so you must be willing to put the time and effort into training them. They are also very afectionate and LOVE to be around their family, so do you have the time to spend with this breed?? If the answer is YES to ALL this, then your ready for a doodle, if not, I'd look else where.
GL : )